House was mostly full, but it was a smaller venue inside the Roland E. Powell Convention Center in Ocean City. I would say 1,000 to 1,500 fans, but that could be off, just a guess.
I was surprised immediately when I walked through the door and saw the legend Bob Backlund set up in a booth to take pictures and sign autographs. There was a sign reading "Now appearing: WWE Hall of Famer Bob Backlund" so the impression I got was that WWE will continue these types of appearances with different legends. The price was $30 I believe.
When we went to sit down, I was surprised again to see across the ring from me, sitting in the front row were Jay and Mark Briscoe with their father and children. During the night, many wrestlers acknowledged them, most notably Justin Gabriel and the Usos. They were also getting a lot of attention from fans who went up to say hi. I didn't want to bother them right off the bat, so I waited until intermission.
Event started with Tony Chimel coming out and introducing the contestants of the opening bout which was:
Team Rhodes Scholars and Brie Bella vs. Tons of Funk and Naomi (Mixed 6-Man Tag Team Match):
Sandow came out with a microphone during the Rhodes Scholars entrance and talked up Cody Rhodes, but the acoustics were very rough in the auditorium, so I couldn't make out much of what the Intellectual Savior of the Masses was saying. Rhodes got up on a chair and introduced their third partner, Brie Bella. Next out was Tons of Funk. They had a standard match that the crowd got into. Tons of Funk got the win with Naomi pinning Brie, if I remember correctly. The winners did their typical dancing celebration with some small children from the audience.
Next up two former Nexus members battled it out with Heath Slater vs. Justin Gabriel:
This match more fast paced, and these guys went a little more unprotected which was appreciated by the fans. The Cape Town Werewolf got the win after a slash of the top rope.
Next, Tony Chimel informed the audience that they were going to have the power to decide the stipulation for one of the main events later in the evening. By txting in, the crowd could choose whether The Usos versus the Prime Time Players would be a 2 Out of 3 Falls match or a Tornado Tag Team match.
Next up was the Diva's match for the night:
AJ Lee (with Big E Langston) vs. Kaitlyn (WWE Diva's Championship)
This match was pretty grounded. A lot of AJ slowing the pace so that Kaitlyn couldn't get any momentum. It was an alright fight between two girls that made you believe they had some bad blood. The illusion was shattered after the show, however, when Big E rode with Kaitlyn and AJ in the same car. But anyway, as you may have guessed, AJ retained her title and a role up on a distracted Kaityln.
The girls left to the back, but Big E remained out in the ring. He took a microphone, and I believe issued an open challenge, but again the sound was bad. I could barely hear him, and I was only four rows back form the ring. A superstar did rise to the challenge however:
Big E Langston vs. Randy Orton
Pretty good back and forth here, with the two men battling in and out of the ring and even into the crowd at one point. Orton did a good job getting the crowd to pop, and Langston had good psychology making it seem with his facial expressions like he was a confident yet in over his head young talent. Orton got the win after his suspended DDT into RKO routine. Orton slapped every hand around ringside and stopped for some photos and autographs. Right next to me, he stopped to kiss a woman who I believe was his wife, Samantha. Last I heard the two got into a limo, which I did see parked in the talent parking lot, apparently to go out for a night on the town.
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@MooseMcNamara contributed to this article. Follow Raj Giri on Twitter at @RajGiri_303. Got a news tip or correction? Send it to us by clicking here.
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